"Revenge of the Bill of Rights"

Published 01 February 2002

(word count: 750)

Once upon a time, in a revolutionary new nation far far away, America belonged to you, me, my second cousin Guido’s adopted niece, and everyone else who went by the title “citizen.”  Representatives represented citizens because citizens authorized them to.  Since citizens could carry arms, they authorized soldiers and cops to carry arms.  Since citizens could make a “citizen’s arrest” or become bounty hunters, they authorized Deputy Dawg to hunt down criminals and make arrests.

Simply put, a representative  - who is still a citizen even when he’s engaging in the act of representing - couldn’t do anything a citizen couldn’t do.  If an individual can’t do something, a gaggle of individuals can’t do it either.  If I don’t have authority to tax my neighbors, I can’t authorize a group called “government” to tax them for me.  How can I give authority I don’t have to give?

(“The people cannot delegate to government the power to do anything which would be unlawful for them to do themselves.” - John Locke.)

Wouldn’t it be fun if we citizens still owned our country and we could do to public representatives what they do to us?

From WorldNetDaily:

Republicans Nick Smith and Curt Weldon introduced a bill requiring all males 18-22 to “receive basic military training and education as a member of the armed forces.”  Those granted moral or religious exemptions would be required to participate in “a national service program.”

From LooseCannon News Service:

Congressmen Nick Smith and Curt Weldon were drafted by the Institute of Fast Food Eateries today and will be assigned to a McWendy King franchise.  “They’ll be trained in basic hamburger flipping and taught how to mumble into the intercom,” the local manager said.  They could then graduate to making the popular Breakfast-on-a-Stick with Secret Sauce.  Asked whether either lawmaker would be assigned to mixing the actual sauce, the manager was skeptical.  “Our sauce is a vital asset.  I’m not sure we can trust politicians with our commercial trade secrets.”

From Associated Press:

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the federal government can seize a 68-year-old widow's land because she allegedly allowed her son to grow marijuana on the acreage.  Two appellate judges concluded she had turned a blind eye to her son’s illegal activities.  She put up a legal fight to stop the forfeiture of her property, arguing she was the innocent owner of the land.

From LooseCannon News Service:

The Society of Constitutional Scholars ruled that a 68-year-old widow can seize two appellate judges’ robes and gavels because they allegedly allowed their courtroom to become a mockery of justice.  The scholars concluded that the judges had turned a blind eye to the Constitution.  The judges put up a legal fight, arguing they shouldn’t be sentenced to six months in a remedial Constitutional Law course because they had innocent minds.

From Nandotimes.com:

A federal appeals court ordered the Tigua Indians to close their casino because it violates Texas law.  Attorney General John Cornyn filed suit to close the casino, arguing that casino-style gambling is prohibited in Texas.  The Alabama-Coushatta recently opened a casino in eastern Texas, prompting a promise from Cornyn to shut it down, too.

From LooseCannon News Service:

The Council of Native American Tribes ordered the state of Texas to close Lotto, the state lottery operation, and all other state-run gambling activities, because state gambling monopolies violate individual freedom.  In addition, the Council placed Attorney General John Cornyn on one year supervised probation for carrying coins in his pockets.  “Coins are considered gambling paraphernalia,”  said a Council spokesperson.  Coins are notorious as so-called “scratch-off delivery devices” used to uncover numbers on state gaming cards such as Gambler’s Greed, Calf Fries Cash, and The Yellow Rose of Excess.

Authoritarian-minded folks would argue that if citizens could do anything the government does, we’d have utter chaos.  But libertarians know that it’s government run amok, doing all sorts of things that citizens can’t do, that causes the chaos.  What was legal yesterday is illegal today.  What wasn’t regulated then is regulated now.  What belongs to us can belong to the government whenever they wish to take it, under whatever pretext of legalized thievery they choose to invent.  How can any of us make long-range plans in an atmosphere of government chaos?

From the Washington Post:

Last October, Consumer Product Safety Commission Chairperson Ann Brown pushed for a recall of the Daisy air rifle.

From LooseCannon News Service:

Daisy is pushing for a recall of airheads.

- by Garry Reed